Service designed to cut identity theft

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By Lori Wynn
Staff writer

POSTED:October 6, 2010 3:43 p.m.

Ever wonder if there’s a better, safer place for paid bills and old checks as they fall from the fingertips and into the trash can? With countless reports of identity theft and bank fraud cropping up all over the country, Linda Bowers, senior credit officer at Bryan Bank and Trust, said the branch on Ford Avenue will be offering a special service to customers who may be concerned about how they dispose of their banking, credit and other documents.“As a courtesy to our customers we’re going to have a Shred Day …” she said. “We shred all of our inner-bank documents through Shred X, and they’re going to be there for customers for free.The shredding event will be from noon to 3 p.m. Saturday in the back parking lot of the Bryan Bank and Trust at 9971 Ford Ave. in Richmond Hill.“Our goal is just to make everyone aware what can happen with your documents and to get people to dispose of them in the correct manner,” Bowers said.She said with people putting so much emphasis on identity theft and bank fraud, the event seemed like a good idea. She said there have been some instances of fraudulent checks at Bryan Bank and Trust. Bowers also noted that people will even try to print their own checks with account numbers from someone else’s account.“If someone gets a hold of an old account number on an old check, they can write those checks, and it will come back to the individual whose name is printed on the check,” Bowers explained. “If they get you Social Security number, they can apply for credit through your name – especially a credit card or anything they can apply for through the mail.”The safest preventative measure, Bowers said, is to shred old documents.“If people have old checks lying around, they should be shredded,” she said.Another way to keep identity safe is to “paperless.” That means conducting most of your banking online and having all bank statements and credit card bills e-mailed, she said – that way there is no paper trail. Bowers said the Bryan Bank and Trust website – like those of most banks – is a secure site and protected from fraudulent activity.This will be the first event of its kind for Bryan Bank and Trust, and Bowers said, “If this goes well, I would imagine we might continue this on a regular basis – maybe twice a year.”For more information about Shred Day or banking security, call 756-4444.